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January 2014

01/29/2014

Yesterday, in his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama stated that “…Women deserve equal pay for equal work… Deserves to have a baby without sacrificing — job. A mother deserves — day off. …” The President Obama says it’s time to do away with “Mad Men” era policies. Equal pay for equal work is a simple matter of fairness.

Almost five years ago, President Barack Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, with Lilly Ledbetter, who suffered twenty (20) years of pay discrimination. Data indicates that working women in the United States are paid an average of eighty (80) cents for every dollar paid to men. Because women earn less, on average, than men, they must work longer for the same amount of pay. The pay gap is even larger for most women of color; on average, black women earn about seventy (70) cents, and Latinas about sixty (60) cents, of every dollar paid to all men. Our daughters and granddaughters should know that they’ll enter the workforce as equals to their male counterparts. But it’s going to take a real effort to get this done.

The Equal Pay Act, the law that was supposed to make equal pay for equal work a reality, is in bad shape. That’s why right now, the people from all around the country are picking up their telephones to take action– and you can join them. Call the White House comment line and urge the President to get the ball rolling on closing the wage gap by prohibiting federal contractors from punishing or firing workers who talk about their salaries with co-workers. This action from the President would address one piece of the Paycheck Fairness Act and protect nearly a quarter of the federal civilian workforce despite congressional gridlock.

President Kennedy called the Equal Pay Act “a first step” to ending the widespread practice of paying women less than men for the same amount of work. And that’s exactly what it was: a first step. 50 years later, we’re still fighting this fight, and women STILL make 23 cents less on the dollar. House Democrats have proposed a solution — the Paycheck Fairness Act — but Republicans voted to block this legislation from even coming to a vote. That is unacceptable.

In 1996, Equal Pay Day was established by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) as a public awareness event to illustrate the gap between men’s and women’s wages. For the past thirty-two (32) years, the National Committee on Pay Equity has been working diligently to eliminate sex- and race-based wage discrimination and to achieve pay equity.

In 1979, the National Committee on Pay Equity was founded as a coalition of women’s and civil rights organizations; labor unions; religious, professional, legal, and educational associations, commissions on women, state and local pay equity coalitions and individuals working to eliminate sex- and race-based wage discrimination and to achieve pay equity.

When the Equal Pay Act passed nearly 50 years ago, a woman earned an average of 59 cents for every dollar a man made. Today, she makes 77 cents. The annual gap between men and women’s median annual wages is a staggering $10,849. With more and more families relying on women’s wages to support them in an ailing economy, shortchanging women nearly $11,000 a year is inexcusable.

Solution: The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is an important step in the continuing struggle for women’s rights. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act would take several steps towards closing the wage gap, including: clarifying acceptable reasons for differences in pay between men and women; prohibiting retaliation against workers who inquire about or disclose information about employers’ wage policies and their pay rates; making it easier to file class action lawsuits based on equal pay; and requiring the EEOC to survey current pay data and obliging employers to submit pay data identified by race, sex and national origin of employees.

Action Needed: Help 9 to 5 and other advocacy organizations to make this very necessary change: Contact your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative and urge them to support and sign on to the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Women have waited too long for equal wages. We, as a nation, cannot afford to wait any longer. —9 to 5

1/29/2013–Introduced. Fair Pay Act of 2013 – Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to prohibit discrimination in the payment of wages on account of sex, race, or national origin. (Allows payment of different wages under seniority systems, merit systems, systems that measure earnings by quantity or quality of production, or differentials based on bona fide factors that the employer demonstrates are job-related or further legitimate business interests.) Prohibits the discharge of, or any other discrimination against, an individual for opposing any act or practice made unlawful by this Act, or for assisting in an investigation or proceeding under it.

Directs courts, in any action brought under this Act for violation of such prohibition, to allow expert fees as part of the costs awarded to prevailing plaintiffs. Allows any such action to be maintained as a class action. Directs the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to: (1) undertake studies and provide information and technical assistance to employers, labor organizations, and the general public concerning effective means available to implement this Act; and (2) carry on a continuing program of research, education, and technical assistance with specified components related to the purposes of this Act. Makes conforming amendments relating to congressional and executive branch employees to the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 and the Presidential and Executive Office Accountability Act.

Dr. King inspired millions across the world with the delivery of his famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. The monumental event and the organizing that followed helped lead to the passage of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act – legislation that helped reshape our country and the economy.

In 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech was delivered to over 200,000 civil rights supporters, the speech was ranked the top American speech of the 20th century by a 1999 poll of scholars of public address. Dr. King opened his speech by saying “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.” But in the words of Dr. King on that historic day 50 years ago, “…1963 is not the end, but a beginning…” Enormous strides have been made but much work remains to be done to actualize Dr. King’s dream.

We saw the end of Jim Crow. We have seen African Americans, Latinos, women, and others gain access to jobs and education they were previously denied. In 1963, 42 percent of African Americans lived below the poverty line. In 2011,the percentage African Americans that lived below the poverty line dropped to 27 percent. But we are NOT done yet.

In 2013, there is a growing gap of inequality in this country. In 1963, the unemployment rate for black Americans was 10.9 percent; for whites, it was 5 percent. Today, the unemployment rate for black Americans is 14 percent; for whites, it is 6.6 percent. With that being said, more African Americans are unemployed today than they were when Rev. King issued his clarion call for jobs and justice.

While Black unemployment remains disproportionately high, the right-wing legislators are readying themselves to fight for more cuts to the social safety net when Congress resumes next month. And, despite evidence of widespread, coordinated attacks on voter freedom, two months ago the US Supreme Court gutted key protections of the Voting Rights Act, the signature achievement of the Civil Rights Movement. As previously stated, though we have come a long way, we still have so much work left to do. These modern injustices demand a modern approach to racial justice organizing.

As Congress debates the federal budget and whether or not to raise the minimum wage, we need to make sure they are doing all they can to create jobs and grow the middle class. EVERYONE deserves an opportunity to succeed.

This year, make your greatest demonstration of freedom—- your vote. Take action that can and will change the future. If you are not already registered, get registered to vote. Seize the opportunity to cast your vote.

For the past two years, hard won voting rights have been under attack throughout the country. Although court wins in 2012 in the states of Florida, Texas, and Ohio have turned back some of these efforts, other challenges remain and much education and outreach is needed to overcoming the damage that remains from laws enacted precisely for the purpose of making it much harder for millions to register and vote.

As was aptly stated by President Johnson when discussing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, “The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison men because they are different from other men.”

Each election day, vote and take a friend with you to help them exercise their right to determine the destiny of our nation. Your vote can be decisive, stand up, speak out, be heard— cast your vote! Let freedom ring in 2014.

“…Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness…”—Martin Luther King, Jr.

01/17/2014

Each January, countless people across the nation honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with a Day of Service. Join volunteers across our nation giving countless community service hours as Dr. King’s legacy continues to empower individuals to eradicate injustice.

Each year, volunteers of all ages come together to address problems through service projects that help strengthen our community. Having witnessed how budget cuts potentially threaten the non-profit sector, my aim with this post is to raise awareness of the importance of volunteerism and deepen service engagement by children, youth, and families. Investing individual time and talent is an excellent way to keep the spirit of Dr. King alive. There are countless volunteer opportunities in our community that would be both family-friendly and allow for completion in shorter blocks of time.

Consider volunteering on the upcoming National Day of Service held in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Join hundreds of thousands volunteers across the country giving countless hours as Dr. King’s legacy continues to empower individuals to eradicate injustice.

01/01/2014

Our members of Congress must come to the understanding that for the US economy to experience a real and sustained economic recovery they as our elected officials must pass legislation which promotes the growth of living wage jobs and raise the minimum wage.

As aptly stated by Professor Lawrence H. Summers from Harvard University, “…the United States and other countries will not benefit from further measures directed at rapid deficit reduction. Output and jobs will suffer. A weaker economy means that our children may inherit an economy with more debt and less capacity to bear the burden it imposes. Already, premature deficit reduction has affected economic performance in Britain and several countries that use the euro.

The 2012 election results should have sent the message to all elected officials that the electorate is more concerned about jobs than cutting the national debt. The job growth trend reported by the BLS confirms that the economy is finally beginning to build some momentum, as we work to dig out of the devastatingly deep hole that President Obama inherited from George W. Bush and a generation of flawed policies. Now, we need the President and Congress to build on this momentum and keep their focus on job creation, including by passing the American Jobs Act.”

Prior to the 2012 Presidential election, some political analyst asserted that the race to the White House was all about jobs, jobs, jobs. The election results proved that they were in fact correct. The 2012 election at the federal level was all about jobs. As a result, the Democrats increased their number of seats in the United States Senate, United States House of Representatives, and they maintained the White House for a second term.

Highly regarded economists and the electorate have spoken “Trickle Down” economics failed miserably under Reagan and Bush as best demonstrated by the economic collapse— the road to recovery for our nation is in fact all about increasing the number of living wage jobs, jobs, jobs so that millions of people can go back to work.